Also a plus is the entertainment value of the films infectious classic rock soundtrack, which (besides the Teenagers hits sung by Lymon) includes songs like The Great Pretender, Try a Little Tenderness and Heat Wave., Hampering this on the negative side, besides the films awkwardness with its dark moments, is an inability to provide more than the most superficial look at anything. Visit our Like the jazz and blues artists before them, the rock 'n' rollers of the '50s and '60s were often ripe for rip-offs. She did not know the druggie described in this trial. It makes him not only a good soldier, but a better individual. Also Read Inside Data and Cyber Security issue in Barbados Europe plays chess with Wagner's African moves, imposes sanctions I feel sorry for him, most of all," echoes Zola. Rubin gets his share, too: Emira testified in Surrogate Court that her arrangement called for any money recovered through her suit to be shared 50-50 with Rubin, after expenses and legal fees, which have already reached a substantial subtotal. Elizabeth Waters was not yet divorced when she married Lymon, but the marriage became lawful once her first husbands divorce was finalized. Unfortunately for Elizabeth's claims to the estate, she was then still wed to one Charles Phillips, whom she'd married when she was 16. By the time I met Frankie, he was a record deal-needing, broke ass, scam-on-his-momma-for-a-fix druggie! Elizabeth Waters is currently single. Span wrote that back in Los Angeles, the club where Zola was performing tossed a celebration with a cake and champagne. He was a soldier for most of their brief marriage, taking the bus from her family's home to the post each day. And while Fools ends with an on-screen disclaimer that it is a dramatization based upon certain historical events and the lives of real people, its inability to incorporate key elements of the real Lymon story hampers it dramatically. But her secretary and her booking agent both testified that they were witnesses to the wedding. Years later, in the wainscoted courtroom where Lymon's love life was being retraced in painful detail, Elizabeth turned to the judge. And if he put others through hell too, well, didn't he say, right in that song, that love is a losing game? Waters, who on the witness stand acknowledged a long struggle with drugs and prostitution during her tempestuous relationship with the onetime star, got the news from her attorney Monday night. "I'm not a person to hold a grudge. Did Ukraine use innocent civilians as human shield against Russia in the name of evacuation? During 1965, the copyright for Why Do Fools Fall In Love was changed. Zola, the second supposed wife, got to be pretty friendly with the first. It teaches him responsibility and how to stand on his own two feet. Mays Mortuary, 1221 James Brown Blvd. It was Rubin who, several years earlier, came to the conclusion that Lymons estate was not receiving appropriate royalties. Though Waters was not yet divorced from her first husband when she and Frankie Lymon married in a civil ceremony in Alexandria in 1964, their union became valid when that divorce became final in 1965, the judge found. Neither has Elizabeth or Zola. Producers Paul Hall, Stephen Nemeth. Screenplay by Tina Andrews. She said he didn't mean to hurt her, and blamed his behavior on his addictions. Zola testified that their affair continued off and on for several more years. Set decorator Jackie Carr. Back in Los Angeles, the club where Zola was performing tossed a celebration, with a cake and champagne. In fact, Elizabeth says she saw him the day before he took his last, fatal dose of heroin. And that was that, the last of the hits. After learning of this, Elizabeth went to court to request the suspension of the law. Before the case came to court, Emira changed her mind about the tombstone, despite initially agreeing to have Ronnie Italiano and the UGHA to undertake the project. The elephant in the room was the large sum of money that would be awarded to whoever was determined to be the songwriters of "Why Do Fools Fall in Love. It was copyrighted in the names of Frankie Lymon and Morris Levy. They got married at City Hall in Alexandria, Va., early in 1964. "Some drug users, they rob, they steal, and they do everything to sustain that habit." What is less clear from the file is why, 20 years afterward, it has become so important to be Frankie Lymon's legal widow. With black rhythm and blues releases beginning to win white audiences, music had become a ticket to glory. Eagle's New York counsel Ira Greenberg agreed that his "current inclination" was to appeal. Owning the rights to 1950s rock and roll songs meant more in the 1980s than it did when they were hits. However, it turned out she had been married to someone else at the time. What was there about Frankie Lymon? The opinion dismisses the claims of Taylor, who was unable to produce "credible proof" of her marriage to Lymon or her divorce from her previous husband, both of which she said occurred in Mexico. 1200 Observatory Drive | Madison, WI 53706-1212 | Map. All these arguments were laid forth in voluminous briefs, memoranda, and affidavits filed in Surrogate Court. They pointed to the contracts that Elizabeth and Zola signed with Levys publishing business, Big Seven Music Corp. Each assigned the songs copyright to Big Seven in exchange for an advance ($10,000 for Elizabeth and $7,500 for Zola) against her share of future royalties. Frankie marrying a schoolteacher? According to the obituary published Sunday in The Augusta Chronicle, funeral arrangements will be announced by W.H. Donald Ray Lymon Sep. 6, 1964 - Jan. 23, 2023 Lie in State Fri. 1/27/23, 4-8pm at Small's Mortuary. It didnt last long, however. Interment: Whispering Pines Cem. Celebrity Biographies Frankie Lymon's relationship with Elizabeth Waters ended when Frankie Lymon died on February 28, 1968. He told Zola that the new house guest was "a friend from New York," Zola remembers. "He had the type of personality that would draw people," she said. Elizabeth Waters Found 1,173 people in Florida, Georgia and 49 other states. Copy. And that led to his 1955 smash hit "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?," singing for Queen Elizabeth II at the London Palladium and performing in nightclubs and theaters worldwide. They wanted to impress their friends in school by being on the radio. He changed the spelling of the group's name on the record label to "Kodoks" to avoid a possible lawsuit from Eastman Kodak, and released their first single, "Teenager's Dream" and . But he will apparently have little trouble with Elizabeth Waters. As Water's claim went to court, Zola Taylor ex-member of the Platters, claimed that she had been sexually active with Lymon as early as the "Biggest Rock "n" Roll Show of 1956" tour. He then called Elizabeth and urged her to join him. Opened 1940 | Named after Elizabeth Waters. "He was honest, completely honest," Elizabeth insists. By 1962, Frankies career had been in decline for several years but she had nevertheless come with two girlfriends to meet her onetime idol. None of the three women in court, all of whom he deceived and betrayed, seemed willing to condemn him. As a result, they fought and separated numerous times. Her complaint charged fraud, misappropriation and copyright infringement, among other offenses. These scans come from my rather large magazine collection. Also Read:Family of Lorenzo Dominic Lavalle. Lymon was discharged a year later, he'd said "I do" once more. According to Spans reporting, Emira paid the $2,000 bill. It was modified to just Lymon and Goldner on subsquent recordings for the next decade before Goldner's name was replaced by Levy's. She called the work "moonlighting" and testified that she was arrested for it 15 or 20 times. This time his bride was Emira Eagle, an educated, churchgoing elementary school teacher who lived with her family in nearby Augusta. Similarly, one of the unexamined factors in his turning to hard drugs was apparently the difficulties caused by his voice beginning to change. Others still do, however. Running time: 1 hour, 56 minutes. He is skeptical, too, about some of the harrowing descriptions of Lymon that have surfaced during the legal jousting. "Just make sure the artist or writer gets his share." Chuck Rubin. "I'd have killed him, I was so angry," she says. The Surrogate Court judge hearing the widowhood case pushed for a settlement. He also represented several of the artists featured on the "Dirty Dancing" album. He was previously married to Emira Lymon, Zola Taylor and Elizabeth Waters. 22, 2021. Then, two months after his dishonorable discharge (for repeatedly being AWOL), he went to New York, telling Emira he wanted to see about reviving his career. It is Frankie Lymon's only real legacy, that two minutes and 15 seconds of doo-wop. Pearl, who emulated Frankie Lymon with a distinctive sound all her own, sealed the deal for Robinson, and the Kodaks were signed to the Fury label. He followed it with Im Not a Juvenile Delinquent, I Want You to Be My Girl and other songs characterized by his trademark piercing high voice. Conscious of her stardom (Reporter: "Are you still performing in California?" Frankie Lymon Music - Singer Why Famous: Frankie Lymon and The Teenagers, band Age: 25 (8/30/1942 - 2/27/1968) Frankie Lymon's Relationships (3) Elizabeth Waters Other - Spouse But I couldnt get my hands on him, couldnt find him. According to Elizabeth and several other witnesses, Frankie was back in New York telling them that his marriage to Zola had only been a publicity stunt. She plays Lemmons second wife. Emira's attorneys argue that Elizabeth and Frankie separated in mid-1965 and never lived together as man and wife thereafter, invalidating her claim to a common-law marriage. Why Do Fools Fall In Love was a prime example, and its publishing rights may have earned a lot of money by 1984, according to Chuck Rubin of Artists Rights Enforcement Corp. Rubin established his organization in 1981 to represent artists who he believed had been deprived of their earnings by their record companies. Last in line is Emira Eagle (Lela Rochon), a demure, well-bred Southern educator. As the lead vocalist for the Teenagers, Lymon (played by Larenz Tate) helped turn Why Do Fools Fall in Love into one of the biggest hits of 1956. 507 residents | Coed by wing | Single and double rooms. Taylor, of Los Angeles, a singer with the Platters, contends she married Lymon in 1965 in Tijuana, Mexico. He probably found out through her attorney, who Ronnie now had to deal with during the lawsuit., His dealings with Emira had all been oral. "If you have any kind of heart at all," she says, "you know that he went through hell.". They were there in Surrogate Court -- the three would-be widows and their teams of lawyers and witnesses -- for 10 days this past December and January, raking over the past. He lived for 26 years, was a star for one and a half of them, and left behind a miserable financial and legal mess and three wounded women. Absent the kind of star performance Jennifer Lopez gave in Selena (and that films cleaner, more direct story line), cornball dramaturgy can take audiences only so far and not one note further. Taylor,. Elizabeth Lymon said in court papers that she married Lymon on Jan. 23, 1964, in Alexandria, Va., and had his daughter, Gloria Francine, who died shortly after birth in 1965. Consequently, he left behind a tangled and miserable legal and financial mess along with three wounded women. Set designers Clare Scarpulla, Michael Bernard. Each woman suspected he was sleeping with the other, and both were apparently correct. Copyright document.write(new Date().getFullYear()), Michigan Rock and Roll Legends. That eventually led to singing on street corners with friends and being discovered at age 12 by George Goldner of GEE Records. And that song, which he wrote or helped to write and which will bear his boyish vocal signature forever. Why Do Fools Fall in Love With Frankie Lymon is more like it. Emiras attorneys argued that Elizabeth and Frankie separated in mid-1965 and never lived together as man and wife thereafter, invalidating her claim to a common-law marriage. For Frankie had helped himself to hers. She says she's never recovered financially from the loss of her home and still feels "cheated," yet she also talks about Lymon's ruptured family, and, again, his drug dependency. Levy had been arrested earlier in 1986 as part of the F.B.I. Waters bore Lymon's only known child, a daughter who died shortly after birth. Her published account of the trial and the three women contesting to be named Frankies legal wife and heir was titled The Three Wives: The Legacy Of Love. Elizabeths claim to be Frankies wife and heir was weakened by the fact that she was still legally married when she wed Frankie in 1964. Keep supporting great journalism by turning off your ad blocker. I caught Frankie at a good time in his life. While growing up in New York City, I never had much discipline, Lymon told The Chronicle. The sum, he says, "might have been $1,500. His bride was Emira Eagle, an elementary school teacher who lived with her family in nearby Augusta. He told Zola that the new guest was a friend from New York, Zola recalled. At the trial, Elizabeth testified that she saw Frankie on that visit, as she had a number of times both before and after his wedding to Emira, which she said she knew nothing of. Key parts of this chronology are in dispute, of course. Span reported that Zolas secretary and her booking agent both testified that they were witnesses to the wedding, and that her attorneys argued that California law made her a putative (believed to be) spouse entitled to share in Frankie Lymons property. Paralleling the spectacle of these three women battling over Lymons heritage is the way different elements of this film, directed by Nava from a script by Tina Andrews, are in conflict with one another. But "I couldn't get my hands on him, couldn't find him." "He had been busted in California again for drugs." As a been-around woman never at a loss for an insulting put-down (He dropped you like a whores panties is one example), Fox gives Fools most engaging performance. Privacy Policy Agreement * I agree to the Terms of use and Privacy Policy. She met Frankie when he was 20-years-old, backstage at the Audubon Ballroom in New York City. Frankie told Elizabeth that Zola and I arent doing anything; its just a motherly relationship, Elizabeth testified in court. By 1964 he was using again, and she was hiding the money from his occasional gigs in a hole in the wall of their apartment to keep him from buying heroin with it. He claimed that both women thought that their agreements with Levy were fair, and that neither planned to take legal action against him if she is found to be Frankies widow. When she returned in April, the house was in foreclosure and Frankie was gone with the money. , A thief turns to prostitution to help Lymon fund his drug addiction. November 2, 1988 NEW YORK -- The judge who last winter heard three middle-aged women testify to their heartaches with the late Frankie Lymon -- the doo-wop idol who cowrote and sang "Why Do Fools. The beautiful granite tombstone that Ronnie ordered weighed over 1,000 pounds. Bigger than life! He told his family that night he was on his way to a gig. "Kids didn't know about royalties," says Bob Hyde of Murray Hill Records. As Waters' claim went to court, Taylor claimed that she had been sexually active with Lymon as early as the "Biggest Rock "n" Roll Show of 1956" tour. "She did not know the druggie described in this trial She knew a soldier.". And it stalls or kills a federal lawsuit Eagle had brought to reclaim control of the publishing rights to his song. She has never remarried. The stone was dedicated by his fans and friends on February 27, 1988, the 20th anniversary of Frankie's death and one month before the opening arguments in the case that would determine his legal wife and rightful heir. She has been in one celebrity relationship averaging approximately 4.1 years. Emira came to New York to arrange for his funeral mass and burial, and she paid the bill -- $2,000. He left no fortune, but his name was listed as one of the songwriters of Why Do Fools Fall In Love. In fact, Rubin calls them "mundane, everyday.". Jimmy Merchant and Herman Santiago, the two surviving members of the original Teenagers (Sherman Garnes, the inventive bass, and Joe Negroni were the others), say they wrote "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?" She and Frankie were riding a tour bus together in 1956, doing 81 one-nighters with a rock 'n' roll cavalcade that included Chuck Berry, the Coasters, the Penguins and Bo Diddley, as well as the Platters and the Teenagers. What's different here is that before the suit could come to trial, Elizabeth petitioned the Surrogate Court claiming that she was Lymon's widow and Zola objected claiming that she was. Morris Levy - Roulette Records. Click the "All Sizes" button above to read an article or to see the image clearly. Not that their relationship was entirely maternal. Though this success was short-lived, Lymon on a personal level was apparently quite the boy who couldnt say no. The next month, according to Zola, she and Frankie drove to Tijuana and got married in a small chapel. The record company executive has other problems: He was sentenced last week to 10 years in prison for his conspiracy conviction arising from an FBI investigation of racketeering in the recording industry. I know its been good for me.. ", But in 1984 (as the original copyright term of the song was expiring) Emira Eagle Lymon brought suit in U.S. District Court in New York against Levy, his attorney, his record label and his publishing company. They became lovers, Zola testified, one night in Bangor, Maine, when Frankie had won $1,700 gambling with Clyde McPhatter and she had gotten "a little loaded drinking scotch and water." Undisputed, however, was the song's impact. Lymon, known for being the lead vocalist of the world-wide popular rock group Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers, died less than a year later on Feb. 27, 1968, at age 25 in New York City, reportedly of a heroin overdose. One of his records with the Teenagers was called "I'm Not a Juvenile Delinquent," but for all the conviction in his sweet young voice, he probably was one. Zola Taylor Lymon. The monetary figure was estimated by Chuck Rubin, a former agent, who Paula Span described as a kind of musical bounty hunter. She also wrote that he established his Artists Rights Enforcement Corp. in 1981 to hound, bully, or sue record companies that he thought were depriving artists of their earnings, while taking a substantial cut for his efforts. Zola's attorneys argue that California law makes her a "putative spouse" entitled to share in Lymon's property. Lymon C. Reese Lymon Clifton Reese was born in Stanley, Pike County, Arkansas, on April 27, 1917, to Samuel Wesley Reese and Nancy Elizabeth (Betty) Daniel Reese. Ms. She had insisted that he check himself into a Manhattan hospital to cure his drug habit. That case can now proceed, their attorney says. NEW YORK -- The judge who last winter heard three middle-aged women testify to their heartaches with the late Frankie Lymon -- the doo-wop idol who cowrote and sang "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" and died 20 years ago of a heroin overdose -- has found Elizabeth Waters, 46, of Philadelphia, to be Lymon's legal widow. He was a master manipulator, however, and it was just two months after his less than honorable discharge for repeatedly being AWOL that he went to New York, telling Emira that he wanted to see about reviving his career while also secretly planning to contact lady friends and drug pushers in the city. Goes Out newsletter, with the week's best events, to help you explore and experience our city. This answer is: NEW YORK The judge who last winter heard three middle-aged women testify to their heartaches with the late Frankie Lymon the doo-wop idol who cowrote and sang "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" and died 20 years ago of a heroin overdose has found Elizabeth Waters, 46, of Philadelphia, to be Lymon's legal widow. The pair claimed they wrote "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" with Frankie Lymon and asked for a declaration of rights to the copyright of the hit song. She was 19 and sympathetic; she wanted to help him regain what he'd lost. The resulting trial was fascinating look into Frankie Lymons post-stardom personal life, and it was covered in great detail by Washington Post reporter Paula Span. The only child he is known to have fathered died hours after her birth. Family and friends said goodbye Friday to Emira Eagle Lymon Bryant, who. Her singing group, the Platters, was sometimes referred to as the Four Platters and a Dish; Zola, in her low-cut gowns, was the dish. Half adroit flatterer, half emotional infant, the films Lymon offers hardly a clue as to why his real-life counterpart was so irresistible to women. Borstein, Levy's attorney, says the agreements amount to standard industry contracts. Similar to the stars of today, whenever the press cites "exhaustion" it's drug related. Mini Bio (1) Frankie Lymon was born on September 30, 1942 in Harlem, New York City, New York, USA. Left-Wing Meloni: Italys Attempt to Replicate Giorgia Meloni, Europe is dumping its migrants in Africa in exchange of money, Antoinette Giancana Biography, Family and Movies, David Von Drehle: Biography, Career, Education and Books, Uplift Suasion: the notion to change racism, Mexicos constitutional crisis has its roots in Washington, The EU-Mercosur Deal: Macrons Duplicity Unveiled, Paraguay declares Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organisation. Paula Span revealed that if Elizabeth or Zola was found to be his widow, they agreed to share the proceeds of his estate equally. Published by Mobile Register and Baldwin County from Jan. 25 to Jan. 27, 2023. Lymon's work had largely been reduced to lip-syncing at record hops; he said Zola could help get him some gigs in Los Angeles. Who owns the rights to old songs matters as much or more now than it did when they were hits. She's going to call it "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?". The opinion by Surrogate Court Judge Marie Lambert entitles Waters to an estate that may be worth $750,000 in accumulated royalties from Lymon's 1956 hit and its more recent incarnations. It was held on Saturday, September 14, at Schuetzen Park Casino in North Bergen, New Jersey. William McCracken, who represents Emira Eagle, called her at the elementary school where she teaches. Frankie Lymon/Wife. Zola has been unable to locate records documenting their Mexican wedding, or documenting her Mexican divorce from her previous marriage (her second). Elizabeth, now 46, said she had been born again, but she still strove for glamor, her skirt fashionably above the knee, her fingernails long and orange. "He had the type of personality," says Elizabeth Waters Lymon, Wife No. In voluminous briefs, memoranda, and she paid the bill -- $ 2,000 bill in foreclosure Frankie. 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